Next week Selma will travel to Spanish Fort to take on Class 5A’s No.1 ranked team in a first round playoff matchup, but this week the Saints are focused on an in-county battle with Ellwood Christian.

Although it doesn’t look like it on paper, Selma has a lot to play for. With a win, Selma would win its seventh game of the season and finish the regular season with its best record since 1994. Seventeen seniors will also be playing their final home game at Memorial Stadium.

“I told them early on in the year that this team had an opportunity to be one of the best teams in the history of this school,” Selma head coach Leroy Miles said. “If we could win eight games, we would tie the best record. We still have a chance to do that.”

Miles said the Eagles have a lot of athletes, some that have transferred over from Selma High School in recent years, so he knows they will be ready to play.

“They beat Keith earlier in the year and it would make their season to beat Selma High so we’ve got to play our A-game, play hard, play well and play smart and not make mistakes,” Miles said.

Ellwood Christian head coach Mike Stokes said a win would be one of the biggest in the school’s history.

“I think Selma has more to lose than we have to lose,” Stokes said. “We just have to go out and just play and have fun. We have nothing to lose.”

The Eagles have lost six consecutive games since defeating Keith, including last week’s loss to Akron that kept Ellwood from making the postseason.

Meanwhile, Selma appears to be playing some of its best football of the season.

The Saints have won three consecutive games and four of five after a 1-2 start to the season. Last week, Selma battled back from a second half deficit against Satsuma to make the playoffs for the first time since 2010.

Earlier in the week it looked like this game might end up factoring into a three way tie in Class 5A, Region 3, because non-region records might have come into play on the tiebreaker. A Selma win would have left the Saints in very good position in that tiebreaker, meaning they could have been awarded the No. 3 seed in the region.

All of that changed Tuesday when Greenville was forced to forfeit three games because the Tigers played an ineligible player. With Greenville out of the picture, Selma lost the head to head tiebreaker with Demopolis for the third seed and was given the fourth seed, leaving this week’s game with no bearing on the playoff race.

Miles said his team needs to play well, so that Spanish Fort sees a good team on film.

“They will get this film so you want to play well and to do things well to give them something to prepare for,” Miles said. “If we make a lot of mistakes and don’t play well, it tends to motivate the other team that we aren’t compatible to play against them.”

Last season the Saints defeated Ellwood Christian 26-0.

 

Dallas County at Southside

The Hornets and Panthers saw each other a lot during 7-on-7 drills this summer, but Friday night the teams will actually play a real game. Neither team’s season has gone as planned, with both teams entering on four game losing streaks.

The winner of this game will surpass last season’s win total, because both teams enter 2-7. Last season both teams finished the year with 2-8 records.

Southside lost to Bayside Academy 39-6 last week, while Dallas County lost to Elmore County 40-20. Last season, Southside defeated Dallas County 30-27.

 

Keith at Choctaw County

Before Keith can focus on its playoff opponent — No. 5 Linden — the Bears travel to take on Choctaw County.

A Keith win would put the Bears back at .500 for the season and give them some momentum after losing four of their last five to end the regular season.

The Tigers have lost six consecutive games, including last week’s game to Southern Choctaw 40-14. Last season Choctaw County defeated Keith 39-29.

 

Morgan Academy at Lowndes

Academy

Morgan Academy will travel to Lowndes Academy to take on the Rebels, who have lost their last three games. Last week, the Senators fell in a high-scoring game to Clarke Prep 72-41.

The Senators have lost seven consecutive games after starting the season 2-0, but hope to end the year on a high note. Last season, Lowndes Academy defeated Morgan Academy 18-6.

 

South Montgomery Academy at Meadowview Christian

Meadowview Christian will wrap up its regular season with a visit Thursday night from South Montgomery Academy. The Trojans have lost two games in a row coming into this week’s contest.

The Raiders won two of their first four games, but have since dropped five consecutive games to drop to 2-7 on the season.

Last season, the Trojans defeated the Raiders 40-6.